Fun in Belgium
Trip Start
May 01, 2007
1
25
45
Trip End
Apr 29, 2008
Ghent,
Belgium
Thursday, August 9, 2007
We stayed with them in Gent for three nights. Now for English speakers, here is your lesson in Flemish: to pronounce Gent properly, the G sounds like your Father did when he was clearing his last carton of cigarettes from his lungs. To that sound, add "ent" at the end, and there you have it. Gent really surprised us. Their house is outside the old city, in an area that looks just like any other town. Head to the old city though, and it feels like you're stepping back into the Middle Ages. Beautiful medieval buildings abound, surrounding the three towers of Gent: two Cathedrals and a huge Belfry
01 The Gang
. Canals cut through town with almost the same frequency as in Florence.Terri and I explored the city castle with it's display of old weapons and suits of armour. We decided that it'd be cool to own a castle - like some super pretentious actor or something. Why not? We walked through the Cathedrals, and had a guided tour through the Belfry, which afforded a great view of the skyline of Gent. Elke and Dieter brought us on a short drive outside of town to a reggae festival in a park, in front of a small castle. If I had compiled a list of activities I would expect to do in Belgium, I can't really say that attending an outdoor reggae concert would have been a very obvious choice, but it was good fun, so who am I to complain? The next night, Dieter took us around town after dark, and showed us the sights all lit up. Narrow streets crowded with buildings older than Canada, around meandering canals. It was quite the site. Our last night in Gent, Elke and Dieter drove us into Antwerp and showed us around there. It had the same old time medieval buildings, but with a larger bustling city charm. That night we had some great food, and of course some EXCELLENT local beer. We told Dieter that he should open up a tour company: Dieter's Belgian Tours. Much more exciting then chemical engineering, eh Dieter? Many thanks again to you both, and we hope to see you in Canada after we get back.
02 Gent Skyline
We had a great time!We left Gent, and headed for Brugge - pronounced Brooje in English or Bruguh (with a rolled "r") in Flemish. Brugge's city centre was like Gent x 10. It actually looked like a movie set, but it was the real deal. It was absolutely charming, and quite beautiful to look at. It was swarming with tourists. The streets were choked with them. Once again, we did a ton of walking (dodging the throngs as we went), just looking at the sites. We also took a brewery tour, and got a free pint at the end. Thankfully, Terri hates beer, so I got her free pint as well. Good deal. Someone had the gall to ask our tour guide about light beer, and got an earful from her, and laughed at by the other tour participants. It was priceless.
A lot of travellers might be tempted to skip over Belgium, but it is certainly worth a visit. The sights are great, the beer bloody fabulous and the people are friendly. It is actually the stereotypical vision I had of what Old Time Europe would be like, but without being in the least cheesy. Check it out for sure.
Next stop for us is Luxembourg. We'll be careful not to blink, lest we miss passing through it on the train. Stay tuned...
